Caring for an Oft Neglected Car

The car shop was happy to welcome Nick Green to the crew yesterday. He was quickly put to work with Kelly and Rex as they got a jump start on spring maintenance in the unseasonably warm weather. They began with the SC&ET Department's long ignored line car, S193. Unfortunately, no one could remember when the little red car last saw a complete maintenance routine and the consequences were quickly apparent. Journal bearing covers were found to be exceedingly difficult to open, partially due to the excessive weight the car has been carrying for decades. The SC&ET Department hopes to have their shop area ready soon which will give the excess equipment a new home and alleviate stress on the car. The controller was given a thorough cleaning and lubrication, the motor was oiled, and a new trolley shoe was installed. The car is now ready to face another year of work and has been permanently added to the spring maintenance schedule so it won't become neglected again. We also hope to get line car 1 running for the SC&ET Department this year which will help them in their endeavors.

The maintenance crew then moved on to 1326 and were joined by Wil. After giving the car its complete maintenance, it was taken out down the line. This served the purpose of completing a line check before opening day on March 23. It also gave Nick and Rex a chance to run a car, which they did between Winkler and Wells Roads. Both did a great job and will get more operating experience later in the year. The shop aims to have all interested crew members capable of moving cars around in the yard and into and out of the shop. Currently, half of the crew is either a fully qualified member of the Operations Department (motorman or junior motorman) or yard qualified (able to run as long as no visitors are aboard the car).

If you are interested in learning about the cars and how they work, we encourage you to consider attending the upcoming Trolley Care Program. If you cannot make the scheduled date(s), we still welcome you to stop by and see us on a Saturday (please let us know of your visit in advance, if possible). The Operations and SC&ET (Signals, Communication and Electrical Transmission) Departments are also looking for new volunteers. Please reach out to the museum office if you are interested in helping out in these or other departments.

John and Fred continued work on components for 3001 and Bruce worked on 1500 while Galen got back to work on the much needed drainage project which will alleviate flooding of the front lawn.

Winterfest 2018

Each February, the northeast region's trolley museums gather together for a weekend of operating and discussion. This year, Halton County Radial Railway in Milton Ontario hosted. Galen, Kelly, Tim, and Christine made the journey north for the long weekend.

Festivities began Friday night with pizza and trips on their beautiful suburban car, London and Port Stanley 8, Toronto Transit sweeper S-37, and their small Peter Witt car, Toronto Transit 2894. Rides continued on Saturday with the addition of guest operations. Large Peter Witt car, Toronto Transit 2424, Toronto Transit rail grinder PCC W-30, and Toronto Transit plow TP-11 were added to the car rotation. The day closed with a fantastic buffet dinner at the Canadian Legion and a slide show on the PCCs of Toronto.

The event ended with a visit to Toronto Transit's Leslie Car House on Sunday morning. A tour was given of the LRV maintenance and repair facility. Several guests used the LRV training simulator and the tour closed with a trip around the facility in one of the operating cars.

We'd like to thank Halton County for being wonderful hosts. We all enjoyed our visit.

Plow TP-11 at Rockwood Station followed by Peter Witt 2424

Plow S-37 in carbarn before operations began

Rail grinder W-30 approaches the station

Suburban 8 waits outside the carbarn

LRVs inside Leslie Car House in Toronto

Old Comics and News

Work continued in the Northern this weekend. Kelly, Larry, and Brian continued to remove old varnish and paint from the bedroom. Galen worked in the bathroom and kitchen, measuring out where the sinks and stove may have been given outlines found on the wood flooring which were exposed then the linoleum was removed. Meanwhile, Fred and John keep 3001's restoration moving ahead by cleaning component parts.

Carpet remnant from 1500's hallway. We think it may have been original

Comics found under the linoleum in the kitchen date from WWII

News from 1943 found under the kitchen floor

Current status of the bedroom. Varnish is off the lower walls and paint removal has begun

Another image of the bedoom

Trolley Care Program Returns

We're happy to announce the return of the Trolley Care program this year for those who are interested in the mechanical side of the trolley cars and want to help maintain, repair, and restore the trolleys. The idea behind the program is to provide a fun, hands-on learning experience working on the trolleys. All facets of the operation of the trolley cars and how they work will be explored as part of the experience.

The Trolley Care program will be held one Saturday of every other month from 8:30 A.M. to 1:00 P.M. All ages are welcome. Youth 15 and under must be accompanied by an adult. For those under the age of 12 who are interested, please contact the coordinators in advance. Please wear work clothes. Lunch will be provided.

The first session of the program will be held on March 17, 2018 (weather permitting). At this session, we will be exploring the general maintenance of trolleys, covering lubrication of the cars, controller maintenance, motor and compressor inspection, and other general maintenance activities.

To register, please contact us using the "Do you have a question for the shop?" feature on the side of the page or by emailing the museum office. We're also happy to answer any questions you may have about the program.

Aftermarket Flooring is Gone

The shop was delighted to have a record size winter crew of eight in yesterday. While Fred and John continued cleaning parts for 3001 up in the loft, Galen, Kelly, Wil, Bruce, Rex, and Larry made great progress in 1500. A large portion of the varnish has been removed from the bedroom walls. Additionally, the linoleum that had been put down in the kitchen, bath, and bedroom areas has been taken up, revealing the original wood flooring beneath. Torn and stained oriental carpeting was removed from half of the car's hallway. The stubborn ice box door was removed. Bruce took it home to be cleaned up and slightly trimmed so it will no longer stick. Wil also started cleaning up seat bases for 3001 so they can be repainted.

This half of the hallway is now carpet free. The ice box door has been removed for repair

Aftermarket flooring has been removed in the kitchen and bath areas 

The bedroom walls are starting to look a lot better without a lot of their old, peeling varnish

Kicking Off 2018

After a cold, snowy, and icy end to 2017 and beginning of 2018, the shop is happy to be back to work. Fred continues work on cleaning up detailed components for 3001. Galen has cleaned the old varnish and paint form 169's clerestory windows. John is working to repair a leaking brake stand in car 16. Bruce, Rex, and Kelly have begun the shop's traditional winter work on the restoration of car 1500. This year, work continues in the kitchen and dinning room. Work has also begun in the bedroom.

Bedroom in 1500

Bedroom of 1500, looking into the bathroom and kitchen

Bedroom in 1500

Varnish removal has begun in the bedroom of 1500

How straight is the trolley?

Now that all the window frame repairs have been completed and 3001 is structurally sound, John is checking how straight the car is. After running a line from middle of one end of the car body to the other, he compared the measurements to a line marking the middle of the frame from end to end. It turns out that the car has an approximately 3/4 inch twist from one end of the body to the other. This isn't all too bad. We'll try to to remove some of this twisting by pulling the body back into shape with come-alongs, taking appropriate measures to ensure we don't build up damaging stresses in the body panels.

A brightly color string marks the middle of 3001's body. This marking was brought down the frame using a square and compared to the frames mid-point to determine twist.

Meanwhile, Kelly is cleaning up the various components of 3001's controller. The controller will be repainted and re-insulated as needed before it is rewired and reassembled. The rest of the team continues work on 169, removing old paint and repairing damaged woodwork.

An original builder's photo of 3001 has been located in the library. We have decided to return the car to its original two door configuration.

John has also been working on 2600's line switch. Installation has begun and the car will be back in service in time for Winterfest.

2600's line switch waits for installation